Book Review: She’s Got Dibs (AJ Nuest)

12674822_10208362069110435_1388270772_o

 

If you savored every moment of Sex and the City and the Wedding Planner, be sure you one-click She’s Got Dibs. Can men and women be just friends? Does love always end in heartache? Or — dare we even think it? — can two broken hearts mend one another and find their happily ever after in each other’s arms? These are the questions author AJ Nuest seeks to answer in this contemporary billionaire romance novel.

 

Tessa is an event planning entrepreneur in the Windy City, protecting herself from the heartbreak of the farce called love via one-night stands filtered through five categories she invented out of necessity. After the biggest presentation of her career, a fateful blizzard traps her in New York City. With no luggage beyond her briefcase and purse, she joins forces with the guy in the next chair at the airport to snag everything from hotel rooms to seats for dinner at the hotel bar. From the moment he catches her eye, her well-laid plans are doomed.

 

Dibs is a Chicago-based, hands-on international philanthropist – and the hottest, most eligible bachelor in America. He can’t move a muscle in major U.S. cities and the usual getaway spots without being recognized by the public – and harassed by his family, who prefer to mix high-end corporate mergers with matrimony. Dibs is like Diogenes, looking for an honest, real woman to share true love with, money and mergers be damned – and look, there she is in the next chair! Now, if he can just convince the apple of his eye to let him into her world.

EXCERPT:

“Dibs.” He extended his hand.

Frowning, she accepted his greeting. “Dibs on what?

“No.” He chuckled. “That’s my name. Or well, actually, my nickname. Either way, it’s what everyone calls me.”

“O-o-okay…” The guy definitely had the smolder covered…and those incredible ice-blue eyes. Yikes!

“And you are?”

“Oh, Tessa Adams.” She laughed.

“And everyone calls you…?”

Her frown returned. “Tessa.”

“Oh.” He scanned her face. “No nickname, huh?”

“Not that I recall at the moment.”

He pressed his full lips together as if restraining a smile, eyes twinkling with merriment, and handed her the notepad. “Here’s your confirmation number. The room’s at the Waldorf Towers over on Park.”

Two suites at the Waldorf? In this mess? What was he, a wizard? “Wow, great. Thanks so much for the help.”

“Glad to be of service.” He retrieved his briefcase and started down the corridor, abruptly stopped, and peered at her over the perfect slant of his shoulder. “And don’t worry, Tessa, I’ll think of a good nickname for you.”

She offered him a blank stare. “Hey, knock yourself out.”

Mischief danced along his lips before a grin broke free and he continued down the hallway.

“What a whack job,” she muttered.

 

I have probably read She’s Got Dibs at least five times now. It’s a comforting old friend when you just want to snuggle in – or have to – for a few days. The sensory details are absolutely scrumptious! There are hot showers, steaming tubs of bubbles, blankets and fireplaces to counter the cold outside. AJ Nuest treats her characters to rustic home cooking, gourmet banquets and junk food on movie nights – just don’t fall asleep during the chick flick or you WILL suffer the consequences. And oh, the flowers! AJ Nuest also knows her way around the bedroom and boardroom arenas of romantic drama and comedy, as well as good, solid storytelling that carries you away. Whether you’ve had a good day or a bad day, She’s Got Dibs will work out the kinks and leave you satisfied. I’ve heard a next in series may be in the works, and it can’t get in my Kindle soon enough!

Buy SHE’S GOT DIBS on Amazon

 

DISCLAIMER: I am a member of AJ Nuest’s street team. I bought this book with my own money. Opinions are my own.

Reviewer Bio

Belinda Y. Hughes is the author of Blues 2: The Colonel, Blues in the Night, Confessions of a Red Hot Veggie Lover 1 and 2 and Living Proof. She enjoys cozy mysteries, hot romances, aromatherapy bubble baths and hiking in the woods. Upcoming books include Blues 3: The Twins, a Louisiana lesbian military romance, in which Sam and Ace will take advantage of newly expanded MOS opportunities to further their military careers while trying to maintain their love lives. A new spa mystery series will begin soon.

Buy SHE’S GOT DIBS on Amazon.

BOOK REVIEW: MAYAN BLOOD (THERESA DALAYNE)

ebook-mayan-blood-draft-2a-2

If you like Harry Potter, Dr. Who, Back to the Future, Indiana Jones, Xena and Wonder Woman, you will absolutely love Mayan Blood! A band of teen superheroes, mentored by their leader’s uncle, travel in and out of time to Central America, Europe and more to battle the dark side for priceless artifacts and the fate of the world.

 

His breath hitched when she rested her hand on his chest. She shifted closer, her eyes searching his. “This isn’t a good idea.” She traced the curves of his muscles.

His heart raced under her touch. “I know.”

“Someone’s going to get hurt.” Her gaze landed on his mouth.

“Maybe.” He wound his arm around her waist and pulled her closer. Time wasn’t like the butterfly field. Rather than pushing him away, she curled her fingers around his shirt, her body temperature rising. He could smell the adrenaline coursing through her. The hairs on his arms stood on edge. “It won’t be you.”

She smiled softly, as if teasing him to kiss her. “It’s always me.”

He tucked strands of hair behind her ear, his hand lingering over her jaw. “It won’t be you.”

 

Mayan Blood fits several genres: young adult (YA), New Adult (NA), paranormal, romance, magic, time travel, adventure and then some. To me, time travel seems the most challenging to write, with cultural, legal, financial and personal preservation issues and shifting sub-missions between time-place combinations; methods, risks and rewards of time travel and the whole timey-wimey thing, but Dalayne proves herself worthy with this first book in the Stone Legacy series. She deftly weaves characters’ superpowers, personal agendas, relationships, roles in the missions, voices, wardrobes and weapons across time, place and situations, while remaining true to their unique identities throughout. And the villains! They’re in cahoots with each other, have grievances against one another, make deals and time travel with the teen superheroes to various ends. In addition, Dalayne intuitively drips information at just the right flow rate. I never knew who would do what to whom around the next page corner and was frequently surprised, especially at the fight scenes.

 

“The stone is not simply a rock. It is a miracle. A one of a kind gesture bestowed upon all Riyata by the heavens. Once you bond with the stone and become its guardian, it will be your soul mate. It will feel your pain, and you will feel its pain. When you are sorrowful, it will show compassion. When you are joyful, it will celebrate your happiness. It becomes a part of you, since you are, in fact, a part of it.” – Eleuia

 

Ohio author Dalayne has a knack for creating and solving problems for her characters. Not having a blue police box or flying DeLorean, the team addresses the issue of breathing during time travel by acquiring a primitive, yet highly effective and flexible, biological apparatus. If I told you what it was now, you’d never believe me. Sleeping arrangements are a constant question, between the teens’ attractions to one another, the need for protection against the villains, who strike in dream time as well as any other, cultural mores and seasonal considerations. Elsewhere, a girl warrior must deal with the ban against selling weapons to women in Victorian London using nonviolent means. There are also the questions of which two of the teens should go to the ball, how to get in and what to wear.

 

In honor of the engagement of Princess of Helena Augusta Victoria, Her Majesty the Queen Alexandrina Victoria requests your presence at the celebration ball. Mesdames and Messieurs holding invitations are invited to join. This event will be held at the Grosvenor Hotel, on the day of Our Lord, the 12th of December, year 1865.

 

Mayan Blood addresses sex, feminism and mental health in YA literature with a kickass young female team captain, chemistry between the teen characters, the boys battling the charms of a sensuous Russian witch and the main character Zanya’s humble Harry Potterish beginnings in the loneliness of an asylum orphanage, where she is misdiagnosed, misunderstood and truly does not belong, but was secreted there in hopes of keeping her safe from the dark side. Fortunately, it is there that she meets her best friend forever. Then, like dear Harry, the team finds her and the ride of her life begins. By the end of this adventure, you’ll feel satisfied, yet beg for the next installment, which is Interlude, already available at Amazon. Mayan Blood is a truly unique story fit for mothers, daughters, sisters, friends and YA lovers to read alone or together.

 

“My destiny? You want to help me fulfill my destiny…with a rock?”

“You are a natural-born leader, Zanya. You have a great responsibility, one that you must first understand, and then accept.”

Zanya laughed, mostly from nerves. Renato’s expression didn’t waver. She blinked and her smile vanished. “Oh, you’re serious.”

 

(DISCLOSURE: I am a member of Theresa Dalayne’s Street Team. Opinions are my own.)

Reviewer Bio

Belinda Y. Hughes is the author of Blues 2: The Colonel, Blues in the Night, Confessions of a Red Hot Veggie Lover 1 and 2 and Living Proof. She enjoys cozy mysteries, hot romances, aromatherapy bubble baths and hiking in the woods. Upcoming books include Blues 3: The Twins, a Louisiana lesbian military romance, in which Sam and Ace will take advantage of newly expanded MOS opportunities to further their military careers while trying to maintain their love lives. A new spa mystery series will begin soon.

 

MAYAN BLOOD Link List:

Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/I_6PC-AjhxA

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27777361-mayan-blood

Amazon Kindle edition: http://www.amazon.com/Mayan-Blood-Stone-Legacy-Book-ebook/dp/B018RT2350/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1451165918&sr=8-1&keywords=theresa+dalayne

Amazon Print edition:

http://www.amazon.com/Mayan-Blood-Stone-Legacy-1/dp/1680584294/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1451165918&sr=8-1

US: http://www.amazon.com/Mayan-Blood-Stone-Legacy-Book-ebook/dp/B018RT2350/

Canada: http://www.amazon.ca/Mayan-Blood-Stone-Legacy-Book-ebook/dp/B018RT2350/

UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mayan-Blood-Stone-Legacy-Book-ebook/dp/B018RT2350/

Australia: http://www.amazon.com.au/Mayan-Blood-Stone-Legacy-Book-ebook/dp/B018RT2350/